House Speaker Ron Mariano pushed back Wednesday against a call from the Massachusetts Republican Party for House lawmakers to vote to expel a Cape Cod Democrat under investigation by federal prosecutors.

Federal authorities started probing Rep. Chris Flanagan, a Dennis Port Democrat, after local police said they received a report in October of “potential criminal activity,” according to Barnstable police. Police on Cape Cod were already investigating Flanagan for alleged felony larceny.

Mariano scoffed at a push from top leaders at the MassGOP to have the House attempt to expel Flanagan in a similar move to what legislators did in 2014 when they voted to boot out Rep. Carlos Henriquez after he was convicted of assault and battery against a former girlfriend.

“So you want me to throw him out before he’s charged? Is that what you’re asking me?” Mariano told reporters. “Well, I’m not going to look highly upon that request because you are innocent until proven guilty.”

The Quincy Democrat also did not say if Flanagan should be investigated by the House Ethics Committee but said he “absolutely” takes into account federal investigations of representatives when determining what committees they will sit on during the 2025-2026 legislative session.

“We’ll discuss that when we have an Ethics Committee chairman,” he said.

Democratic leaders in the House have yet to appoint representatives to committees and the House Ethics Committee does not have a chairman until assignments are released. Rep. John Barrett, a North Adams Democrat, led the committee last session.

MassGOP Chair Amy Carnevale said Flanagan should resign from his post amid the federal investigation and after state campaign finance regulators penalized him for misleading them about how a campaign mailer was paid for.

“His pattern of illegal actions has escalated to the point of federal scrutiny,” Carnevale said in a statement Tuesday. “This is not a partisan issue; it’s about restoring trust in our elected officials. Rep. Flanagan must resign immediately to uphold the integrity of the office he holds.”

Flanagan shot back at the Republican Party in a statement to the Herald.

“Especially on the eve of Jan. 6, I’m not going to engage in political mudslinging. I’m proud to represent everyone in my district, whether they are Democrats, Republicans, or unaffiliated,” Flanagan said.